Program Monitoring and Evaluation

Having a Healthy Communities Program evaluation strategy ensures that national program objectives are described and measured. Evaluation results will be used to document funded community and partner challenges and successes, as well as to inform similar programs working to promote and replicate Healthy Communities Program environmental change strategies. Assessment activities will address process, outcome, and impact measures. Local communities, national partners, and CDC will be responsible for various aspects of program monitoring and evaluation.

Progress in achieving the following objectives will be measured across CDC's Healthy Communities Program:

• To increase collaboration among and between national, state, and community partners.
• To ensure the development and implementation of environmental change strategies.
• To collect data to document program impact per setting and sector in each community.

The following procedures are followed to ensure that data collection methods and measures are consistent across funded communities and national partners:

• Community Health Assessment aNd Group Evaluation (CHANGE) Tool, a tool used by all funded communities annually to measure the impact of policy, systems, and environmental change strategies.
• Progress reports, which funded partners will submit semiannually to the Healthy Communities Program office to provide updates on program activities.
• Management Information System, a reporting tool that funded communities and partners will use to submit data to the Healthy Communities Program office.
• Site visits and monthly calls between Healthy Communities Program and funded partners to discuss program progress and status.

Evaluation results will be used to measure program implementation processes and effectiveness. Evaluation results will also be used to identify unanticipated outcomes within funded communities, to continuously improve program design, and to identify and appropriately address communities’ programmatic and technical assistance needs. Results will be shared with communities and the public through success stories, Action Institutes or trainings, journal articles and publications, and tools for community action.